Occupy protester owes Oregon city more than $7,000

Associated Press

January 24, 2014 - 12:35 PM

PORTLAND, Ore. — A woman in a photograph that became a defining image of the monthlong Occupy Portland encampment owes more than $7,000 for legal expenses from her unsuccessful lawsuit against the Oregon city.

The 2011 photograph showed demonstrator Elizabeth Nichols being blasted with pepper spray as she opened her mouth to shout at a police officer.

A jury rejected her suit for $30,000 over the police pepper-spray incident, entitling the city of Portland to compensation.

The Oregonian reports (http://bit.ly/1eLC4r7) the city filed paperwork Wednesday listing what it cost to defend against the suit, including more than $5,000 for transcripts. It isn't seeking compensation for staff time.

A city lawyer, David Landrum, says he offered to forgo the expenses if Nichols agreed not to appeal.

But her lawyer, Benjamin Haile, says she's appealing because she believes there were errors at trial.